Wings No More
by GarthTheBarf337
Summary: A blue macaw will experience his worst nightmare... Will he fight for what was once his? Or will he remain trapped forever?
1. Trapped

At first there was nothing.

Then slowly, painfully, he began to remember.

The men. The ones in white lab coats. The ones who shot him with a tranquilizer while he was flying…

…flying?

Oh, yes, he remembered again. He was a bird, a macaw, deep blue in colour.

"Wake up."

The voice was harsh and low.

He squinted as he opened his eyes and looked around slowly.

He was in a room, no doubt. Metal walls. He slowly moved his wings but he found himself strapped to a cold, metal chair.

"Try to focus. Look at me."

He faced front and saw a tall, dark man in a lab coat glaring at him.

The man kneeled down and came face to face with the macaw.

In a softer tone he said "Do you remember your name?"

Name… name… my name. His mind raced.

"Ri- Ricardo." He said weakly.

The man smiled "Bring in the needle!"

A door opened and another man handed him a roll of cloth.

Ricardo moved his head to get a better look but the man now walked to him and tightened the straps.

"Ow! Watch the wing!"

The man chuckled "Don't worry, after this…" he unrolled the cloth to reveal a syringe with blue coloured liquid inside. "… you won't be needing them anymore." He pressed the needle to Ricardo's neck.

"No! What do you mean? I need my wings!" Ricardo screamed frantically.

"Don't worry. It won't hurt so much. It w…oo…t h…hh…"

The man's voice drifted away as Ricardo felt the liquid take effect.

His vision blurred. The world rotated round him.

Then, blackness.


	2. The Awakening

When he woke up, he found himself on a rocky floor, in a cell.

He tried to get up.

Then, came the pain. Excruciating pain.

_WHAT HAPPENED TO ME? _He thought, heart racing.

He felt strange, as if he… changed. He felt bigger and heavier.

He brought up his wings to his face… except, no, they weren't wings anymore. They were shocking to him. He started to cry in fright.

They were hands. Human hands.


	3. New Body

Braving the pain, he wobbled to his feet. His human feet.

He still had to get used to his new body, the horrific work of his captors.

Leaning against the cold, damp wall of the dark cell, he became frightened of himself, his NEW self. And when he became frightened, he became hungry.

_Crreaakk… bong! _A door opened and closed down the hallway.

Ricardo looked up. He heard footsteps coming closer.

A short man in lab coat stopped in front of his cell "So, you've woken up. Glad to see that." The man laughed an evil laugh.

"When… when I get hold of you…" Ricardo said weakly, still feeling the after-effects of his transformation.

"Oh, but you won't." smiled the man cunningly. "What you'll be doing is eating this!" he tossed a packet of chips to Ricardo. "Oh, and uh, take a look at yourself." He threw a small round mirror into the cell. It shattered as it hit the floor.

"Take a look at yourself. Haha! That was good!" the man said to himself as he walked away.

Ricardo dropped the chips packet and picked up a piece of the mirror.

His fingers still twitched a bit.

He stared into the mirror, and saw a stranger.

Or at least, he still couldn't believe the change. Black hair, brown eyes, light-brown skin, it was the typical human.

He put the sharp, jagged piece of the mirror in his prison shirt pocket. _IT MIGHT COME IN HANDY. _he thought.

Suddenly, questions sprang up in his mind: _WHERE AM I? WHAT DO 'THEY' WANT FROM ME? HOW LONG WILL I BE HERE? WILL I EVER CHANGE BACK? HOW WILL I ESCAPE?_

Escape.

That one question needed an answer, and fast.

Looking around, he noticed the cell had no type of window to let sunlight in. So a quick breakout wouldn't be possible.

Hopes diminishing, he sat down to eat the chips.

As he tore it open, he thought of the free outside world.

Rio de Janeiro.

The lush forests. His home.

He began to think that he would never escape. Not in this situation.

Just then something caught his eye.

A drain.

With his hunger replaced by excitement, he rushed to the drain.

It was big enough to support his size. _GUESS 'THEY' WEREN'T SO SMART AFTER ALL. _he smiled.

He yanked at the drain bars but it wouldn't budge. Four screws held it in place.

Thinking quickly, he checked to see if anyone was looking then took out the mirror piece.

Sticking a long, sharp point into the screw top, he slowly unscrewed them.

He yanked again.


	4. Breaking Out

The drain cover gave out a soft creak as he pulled it free.

His heart was beating with excitement.

Escape.

Looking inside, it looked like a huge pipe.

He stepped in.

The pipe was more slippery than he expected. "Whaaa…!" he screamed as he slid down.

The pipe ended and he was thrown into a huge round tunnel, flooded by a human waste and garbage.

_A SEWER SYSTEM, GREAT. _he thought as the muck clung to him.

As he rubbed his eyes, sunlight caught his attention.

Looking up, he saw an open hole leading out.

_AWWW, NORMALLY I WOULD JUST FLY UP THERE._ he thought.

Climbing up the metal ladder provided, he stuck his head out and looked around, his eyes getting used to the light.

Escape was the only thing on his mind.

Escape. Freedom. The only thing he couldn't escape now was his body.

He squinted into the distance.

The forest lay no more than 400 metres away, separated only by a fence of barbed wire. Until he saw it.

A guard tower by the fence.

A shout broke the silence "Oi! He's escaped! There, down the drain!"

_OH SHIT! _His mind screamed. _FAST, FAST, THINK FAST._

Adrenaline rushed through him.

_IT'S NOW OR NEVER… _his heart raced.

"OK!" he said to himself.

And climbed out of the hole.


	5. The Long Run

_RUN, RUN, DON'T STOP. DON'T LOOK BACK. _he told himself.

He felt the power coming to his new legs as he ran.

"Stop! Or we will fire! You cannot escape! Stop NOW!" came the loudspeaker from the tower.

His eyes were fixed on the forest that lay so close ahead.

"Take him down!"

It was followed by a loud burst of machinegun fire.

He reached the barbed wire.

So close…

Bullets whizzed past him as he threw himself over the barbed wire.

As he hit the grass on the other side, he thought: _I'M DEAD. THE BULLETS WILL HAVE GOT ME BY NOW._

But they didn't.

The forest was only paces away by now.

He smiled in relief… and that was when it got him.

A sharp pain exploded in his right ankle.

_NO, NO, NO, NO, NOT NOW! I WILL NOT DIE HERE! _he told himself as he limped quickly.

The threat of bullets lessened as he reached the first trees and then limped into the forest.

He stopped for air behind a huge tree and looked up.

The blue sky.

The fresh air.

He breathed in deeply. Freedom.


	6. A Short Lived Freedom

The throbbing pain in his ankle made him moan and groan

"Awww… goddammit." He said to himself as he tore a strip off his sleeve and tied it around the wound.

The sun shone in thin rays through the tops of the trees.

Sweat drenched him.

He heard a bird sing and looked up. It was a yellow canary.

"H-hey there. Th-think you can help me?" he said weakly as the loss of blood weakened him. He wasn't sure if the bird could understand him but it was worth a try.

The canary stopped singing and looked down with big, round eyes.

It flew away quickly.

"No! Wait, come back…" he called. But it was no use.

How he wished he could fly again, to soar the clear skies of sunny Rio.

He looked down at his bloodied ankle. Blood still flowed out.

He suddenly became dizzy.

_NO, I… MUSN'T BLACK OUT AG… AGAIN… UGHH…_ his mind told him as he struggled to stay up.

Losing the battle, he fell to the ground as everything faded around him. Memories of his free past as a macaw flashed through his mind.

Then, blackness clouded him.


	7. The Discovery and A Burning Past

Nico couldn't fathom why the human was in the state of being wounded, and in the forest, too.

_SHOULDN'T HE BE IN THE FAVELAS OR SOME HOSPITAL OR SOMETHING?_ he just couldn't get it.

He reached the tree branch overlooking Rio where he knew Blu and Jewel were always relaxing at- they were 'lovebirds' after all.

"Yo, amigo! You're not gonna believe what I saw, man!"

The two macaws turned around.

Jewel smiled "Hey there, Nico."

"Bring on the news." said Blu as he stretched his wings and yawned.

Nico rushed through it "…"

"Hey, hey, hey, slow down." said Blu, looking confused.

Nico paused for air "There was this human, man! He was lyin' there like 'U-UGHHH… GROAN' and I was lookin' at him like 'GASP!'. You gotta come check it out!"

"Whoah, whoah, whoah!" Jewel came between them with serious eyes. "A human? You can't trust them! I lost everything because of them!"

Blu turned to face her "It's gonna be alright, Jewel. Take Linda for example, not all humans are bad."

"Come on, you gotta see him!" Nico said excitedly as he tugged at Blu's wing.

"Wait, Blu! Don't go!" Jewel held back his other wing.

"If the human's injured or something, how can he harm us? I'll be back, Jewel. I promise." He told Jewel softly with a reassuring smile.

Jewel looked at him, then smiled herself "I know you will."

She let go of his wing "Ummm… Blu?"]

"Yes?"

"I love you."

"I love you too, Jewel."

She saw Blu and Nico fly off in a flash.

As she watched them go, a dark memory projected in her mind:

_The forest was burning through the night. _

"_Fly, Jewel! Fly away! Away from here, go!" her father cried out from behind her. She was only 6 years of age._

_She looked back. The human machines were clearing out the forest and fire crackled everywhere. She coughed through the smoke._

"_Mama! Papa!" she called out as tears started flowing out of her precious blue eyes. The smoke started to cloud her view._

_She managed to catch the last glimpse of her mother and father hugging each other before a burning tree fell on them both._

"_Nooo! Mama! Papa! I'm scared! Don't leave me here!" she was crying now, tears poured out of her eyes in torrents. Her parents was her safety, her refuge, her EVERYTHING…_

_But she knew she had no choice. Flying out into the sky, she looked back down on her home, burning with bright, orange-yellow fires._

_And from then on, the fire in her own heart had never settled…_

She snapped out of her memory and found herself sobbing.


	8. The Two Sides Meet

Blu followed Nico from behind.

"Nico! Wait up!" Blu panted.

"Keep up man, you HAVE to see this!" Nico responded without a hint of tiring. That was to be expected if he could dance HOURS of samba and not take a break.

"I'll be dead before I even…" Blu was interrupted.

"There he is! Over by that huge tree!" Nico pointed.

They both flew to the lying figure on the ground. The human's face was quite pale and covered in sweat.

_HE'S JUST A TEENAGER. _Blu thought. He landed and walked around the man.

"Holy son of a bird!" he exclaimed as he reached the man's feet. "This dude got into some fight or something!"

"Told ya." Said Nico. "Think we should help him?"

"Are you kidding… we wouldn't even be able to carry him an inch." Blu responded.

"Hmmm… what about we try this." Nico landed beside the boy's ear and started screaming gibberish and pounding the man's head with his tiny wings.

There was no response.

"Nico, you're just making it worse… at least stop the hammering!" Blu said from the other side of the body. "I got another idea."

He looked at the dark, red hole in the boy's ankle and tried not to puke. The smell alone was enough, let alone the sight of it.

He reluctantly but slowly put his wing on an area beside the wound and pushed hard.

The boy's hand and the foot he was touching flinched slightly.

Blu's eyes widened and his heart raced with excitement. _HE'S NOT DEAD!_


	9. Home Sweet Home

Ricardo heard a screaming in his head, but he couldn't come to his senses.

Then, came the pain again, the exploding pain.

"UNGH… UHHH… ARGH… OOWWW!"

He felt every part of his body come back alive.

He opened his eyes. The environment around him slowly came into focus.

He sat up and pulled his foot away from whatever was touching it.

Suddenly, a small yellow canary flew in front of his face.

"H.. hey little guy, you came ba…ck." he smiled.

"Tweet! Wee-eet! Weet! Twe… -ot dead! He's not dead! Blu, come take a look!"

Ricardo couldn't believe his ears. The meaningless tweets suddenly made sense to him. He realized: _I NEVER LOST MY CHARACTERISTICS… JUST MY BODY._

"It's good… that you came back." he said to the canary. Just then, a blue macaw flew up beside the canary. He saw an image of his past self. "This your friend?"

Nico looked at Blu "He CAN'T understand us, can he?"

"Of course I understand you. What're your names?" Ricardo chuckled.

"No way… I think he CAN understand us." whispered Blu. "I'm Blu. BLUUUU. B-L-U. BLU. My name is…"

"Ok, ok I get it. You're Blu." interrupted Ricardo. "And you, little birdie?"

"First of all, I'm not a little birdie. Second, I'm not entirely sure I can…"

"His name's Nico- my pal." said Blu. Nico nudged him. "Sorry, he just wanted to know your name." whispered Blu to Nico.

"Nice to meet you both. I'm…"

"_RICARDO!_" came a loudspeaker from the distance. "_RICARDO, WE KNOW YOU'RE OUT THERE AND YOU CANNOT HIDE! TURN YOURSELF IN! NOW!"_

"What was that?" said Nico, looking around anxiously.

"They're here for me. We have to go…" Ricardo said as he started crawling . "Go, go ahead! Don't wait for me!" he motioned with his hand.

The unmistakable sound of a fast-moving jeep cut through the forest, coming closer.

He looked up. Blu and Nico were gone. He continued to crawl. _GOD, DON'T LET THEM KNOW WHERE I AM…_ he prayed.

The jeep was closing in. _THIS IS IT._ he thought.

He looked back and saw an army jeep heading towards him. _RATATATATATAT!_ came the sound of gunfire and the bullets hit the trees around him. He curled up and covered his head with his hands.

He heard the jeep stop and looked as two soldiers with army berets jumped out of the vehicle and ran to him. He tried to get up…

… _THWACKK! _A soldier hit his head with his rifle-butt as the other tied his hands and feet and blindfolded him. "_Então você pensou você poderia escaper, huh?"_ a soldier barked.

They both laughed as they carried him and threw him in the vehicle.

* * *

><p><strong>LATER…<strong>

"Wake up, sleeping beauty! Hahaha!" said a soldier as he was pushed out of the car. He landed face-first on dusty ground. His legs were untied.

"Get your ass up, boy!" he was pulled up by the hair.

"AAAAGGHHHH!" he groaned.

He felt a gun barrel press the back of his head. "Move it, _pronto!_"

A soldier untied his blindfold and he found himself staring at the entrance to a dark hallway. It looked like a bunker. It took him a while to notice he was back where he started.

They led him through a series of hallways and stairs going down. They reached a grey, metal door and a soldier opened it. "Get in! I said GET IN!" the soldier behind him kicked him in and he hit the hard, concrete ground. He felt warm blood flow out of his nose.


	10. The Truth

"Thank you sergeant, I'll take it from here." he heard a man say as the door closed.

A hand pulled him up and threw him on a chair. Someone behind him tied him up to the chair._ HERE WE GO AGAIN…_ he thought.

"Ah, a familiar face!" the man said. Looking up, he saw _THE _man.

"You… took my wings…" he grunted.

"Oh no I didn't. Haha… I gave YOU a better life." the man chuckled as he punched Ricardo.

_PACKK! _came another punch and he spat out some blood. "Now you listen VERY carefully. In my prison, to GET along, you have to GO along. You get that? Hm? Let me hear you say it…"

Ricardo shook his head "Not entirely."

_BOCCKKK!_ the man elbowed him. "He grabbed Ricardo by the hair and adjusted his head to face him. He glared at Ricardo "Now I assure you… that you're time here will be a whole lot easier… if you just participate."

Ricardo spat blood in his face.

"Argh!" he wiped his face with his sleeve and sent a hard right to Ricardo's face that almost knocked him out. "Ungghhh… you- you must be quite the boxer." Ricardo said and the man chuckled.

He walked over to a wall and slid open a window that didn't look like it was there to reveal a view of the forest outside. He sighed as he looked out "I had dreams, Ricky. Dreams of a safe forest, a safe Brazil where humans and animals cooperate…"

"Well… looks like you aren't doing such a good job then." Ricardo said.

"You don't understand. You're young." the man said calmly.

"What do I NOT understand? YOU changed me into what I'm not! THAT'S what I understand!" Ricardo exclaimed.

The man turned to face him, his voice rising "I did that for the greater good! I had a young lad… just like you, Ricky. He ran off. Guess what happened next. We found him… and in his useless attempt to run, our guards blasted open his stomach with a single grenade blast… NOW DO YOU WANT THAT?"

"So you're telling me I'm not alone and… I'm just supposed to… LIVE with it?" said Ricardo.

"No, you're not alone…" the man said as he walked over slowly.

"THEN WHAT DO YOU WANT?" shouted Ricardo, his face getting red.

"The forest isn't safe anymore… Bird smugglers, bird hunters, forest cutters… everything! I did this to save you and a few other lucky birds… for you and them to become human, to live a safer life, by living as a different race. Because… because you're special, Ricardo." the man explained.

"But WHY? Why ME?" Ricardo said as he started to cry again.

The man walked closer to him until he shadowed Ricardo.

"Why you? Because I'm your father."


	11. AUTHOR'S NOTE

_OK PEOPLE, WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE STORY SO FAR… PLS REVIEW AND FEEL FREE TO GIVE ANY SUGGESTIONS! NEXT CHAPTER WILL BE UP PRETTY SOON. :)_


	12. Dad's Letter

Back in an even higher security cell, and his face bruised, Ricardo still couldn't believe it.

Well, yes, he did not know much about his father when he was a bird. But never in his wildest dreams would he find his dad a human and doing this to him.

_IT MUST BE THE BIRD HUNTER._ he thought, as a flashback came into his mind:

_It was a sunny day. Ricardo had just finished his daily flying around Rio, and he was on his way home._

"_Boy, I do hope mom's got some seeds at home 'cause I'm starving." he said to himself as he neared his home tree. _

_As he came closer, he saw his mom and dad at the foot of the tree. Except his dad was lying down._

"_Dad! What happened?" he asked as he landed. "Mom, what's wrong with dad?"_

"_It's those damned hunters…" his mother said, crying a bit. "They've been shootin' like it's open season." said his father "But don't worry… the bleeding's stopped and Ricardo…" he motioned with his wing to come closer._

_Ricardo leaned in. "… I'll find a way out for all of us." his dad whispered._

_His father relaxed again and closed his eyes. "Enough talking for now, your daddy needs a rest." said his mother. "You dad's lucky the shot wasn't fatal."_

_Well, his mom wasn't so lucky. A couple of days later she and his father were out looking for food when a rifle bullet got her straight in the heart._

_Ricardo watched as his father returned, holding the lifeless body of his mother in with his talons. "We will see each other again. Take care of yourself." were the last words he heard his dad say before his father took off…_

… _for about three weeks, when Ricardo left in search of his father, that was when they got him with the tranquilizer._

"Hey, you got a letter for ya!" barked a voice from outside.

He snapped out of the flashback and a small, piece of folded paper was slid under the metal door of his cell.

He picked it up and unfolded it. In the dim light of his cell, he looked at the words written on it:

_Ricardo,_

_I hope your time in here has made you think. I've been wrecked since mom died, and I swore to myself to make our lives better. That's all I wanted. If you're reading this, I will have left for Germany to meet an old friend._

_PS: YOU WILL BE FREE IN 3 DAYS. WAIT._

_Dad_

His heart beats quickened. _3 DAYS? FREED IN 3 DAYS? WHAT DID HE MEAN? HOW?_

Alone with the low hum of the ventilator, he wondered if it had anything to do with execution. Being killed was also a form of freedom, after all.

He sighed. _NOT MUCH TO DO RIGHT NOW, THEN. MIGHT AS WELL GO TO SLEEP._ he though as he closed his eyes and dozed off.

* * *

><p><strong>3 DAYS LATER…<strong>

The last two days were uneventful for Ricardo, who spent most of his time sleeping.

Today, he was on alert mode, expecting anything to happen at any second.

But no. Hours passed, and nothing seemed to happen. _YEAH WOW, WHAT A FUNNY TRICK OF FREEDOM, DAD. _he thought.

Just as he was about to sleep again, the sound of the ventilator stopped, and the lights went out.

* * *

><p><em>**PLS REVIEW!**<em>


	13. Breaking Free

_THIS COULD BE IT._ he thought as he got up quickly and stood waiting for the door to burst open, the wall to break down, anything. He NEEDED to get out.

Shouts were heard from outside, followed by gunfire. _WHAT IS HAPPENING?_ he thought anxiously.

He saw lights moving around from under the door and then someone pounded the door once.

"_Ficar__para trás_! – Stand back!" came a shout from just outside the door.

_BOOOM!_ The door blasted open and Ricardo moved back and protected his face with his hands. "I'm not a bad guy! I'm not a bad guy! Please don't shoot!" he stammered.

A gloved hand grabbed him by the shoulder and he put down his hands. They looked like the SWAT. Whoecer they were, he knew they were the police.

"_Temos um prisioneiro_! _Tira-__lo __daqui__!_" the police ordered and another police outside the door held him by the arm and they both jogged out.

They were just about to run the last hallway leading out when a man in lab coat and a pistol appeared from a door and... _PAM! PAM! PAM-PAM!_ he took down the police with 4 easy shots.

Ricardo reached for the police's handgun. "Don't move!" barked the man as he walked closer. He put his arm around Ricardo's neck "It looks like your father betrayed us! Looks like we have no more use for you! Walk forward!"

"I'm done rotting in this HELLHOLE!" Ricardo shouted and he mustered all his strength as he threw the man over. "OH, UNGH!" the man groaned. Ricardo quickly picked up the police's handgun and aimed at the man, his hands still shaky.

"Die, you useless bird!" the man screamed as he picked up his gun. _BOM! BOM! BOM! BOM! BOM! BOM! BOM! BOM! BOM! BOM!_ Ricardo emptied his clip on the man and a pool of blood started to expand under him.

Ricardo dropped the pistol, shocked. It was the first time he had killed a human.

Still breathing heavily, he ran out of the hallway.

* * *

><p>Sunlight greeted his eyes, and he saw police cars and vans surrounding the entrance.<p>

"_Não se__mexa! _– Don't move!" came a vice from a loudspeaker and he saw everyone aiming their guns at him. He nearly peed his pants.

About 10 seconds later, they lowered their guns "It's all right, boy. It's over. You can walk to us now."

A policeman ran to him and guided him to a police car "We'll just take you to the police station once we're finished here, ok?"

"Yeah, sure." replied Ricardo.

The policeman smiled and then closed the door. Ricardo rested his head and relaxed.

He was free FOR REAL at last.


End file.
